Employment and disability in Australia: improving employment outcomes for people with disability

This report contains a comprehensive assessment of the trends, drivers and consequences of labour market disadvantage faced by people with disability in Australia, with a view to highlighting the potential for policy and actions to promote greater inclusion and support, reduce barriers to employment and address the discrimination and unconscious bias that still endures in Australian society.

The report reveals that there has been no improvement in employment rates for people with disability in Australia over the last two decades, despite extensive policy reforms and greatly increased funding for supports and service delivery.

This represents a massive loss to the Australian economy, with the report showing that increasing employment of people with disability by 10 per cent could add $16 billion to economic output each year. Aside from the obvious under-utilsation of the talents of people with disability, the opportunity to work is fundamental to living a fulfilling life and to achieving autonomy and independence.

This report offers recommendations aimed at fostering a more inclusive workforce, including implementation of a ‘work first’ approach, enhancing public sector employment initiatives, promoting employer leadership in disability inclusion and improving education-to-work transitions, and the establishment of a National Disability Employment Agency.